Greece sends extra riot cops to Kos as tension escalates

(MENAFN- Arab News) KOS Greece: Greece sent extra riot police to a resort island Wednesday as tensions mounted over a huge influx of migrants while dozens were missing off Libya after the dramatic Italian rescue of a stricken dinghy.

The police deployment to Kos came after the island's mayor Giorgos Kiritsis warned of 'bloodshed' if the situation on the island of 33000 people where around 7000 migrants are waiting to apply for immigration papers worsened.
'Two units or 40 men have arrived in Kos. Other reinforcements are being sent from other eastern Aegean islands' a police spokesman said.
Police on Tuesday had beaten back migrants with truncheons and sprayed them with fire extinguishers to prevent a stampede as the arrivals mostly Afghans and Syrians were being relocated to a local football stadium after camping along roads and beaches for weeks.
Kiritsis said things had 'calmed' on Wednesday but were still tense as thousands waited to be registered.
Meanwhile in waters off Libya about 60 migrants were missing the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said after interviewing survivors who were plucked out from their sinking rubber dinghy.
An Italian corvette the Fenice picked up dozens of migrants aboard the dinghy on Tuesday after the vessel was spotted by a naval helicopter.
Fifty-four were brought to the Italian island of Lampedusa but according to testimony from survivors the boat had set off with between 117 and 120 people on board all of them from sub-Saharan Africa the IOM said.
Back in Greece local media reports said 250 extra police officers were being deployed across the islands favored by migrants crossing over by sea from Turkey.
Medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders) said its teams in Kos had seen 'harassment of migrants and refugees in public spaces including private security men forbidding them from sitting on park benches in the city center.'
'MSF is very worried about how the situation is evolving in Kos' said Brice de le Vingne MSF Director of Operations.
'What was previously a situation of state inaction is now one of state abuse with police using increasing heavy handed force against these vulnerable people' he said.
De le Vingne said MSF had called upon Greek authorities eight months ago to 'organize decent and humane reception in the islands of the Dodecanese specifically on the island of Kos.'
Mayor Kiritsis said extra immigration officials had been sent to Kos since the beginning of the week to speed up the administrative procedure.